The collective intercity transportation by bus is currently a mean of locomotion much sought after by people. Security in accidents is a very important factor that must be taken into account in design of bus body structure, being the evaluation of passenger safety of this type of vehicle is an important subject that should be checked, because in many accidents occur disconnection between seats and fastening members causing serious passengers injury, often fatal. This work aims at evaluation the behavior of frame fixing of seats of intercity bus bodies, submitted to the frontal impact situation in a rigid wall of 100% offset, through evaluation by finite element method (FEM). This study uses a numerical model corresponding to the body structure and chassis, developed through flexible beam elements, combining with shell elements for the structure of the seats and its fastening members, with the objective of not missing the essential aspects of the problem, allowing the solution with a reduced computational time. The numerical model of bus body and seat was impacted against a rigid wall at a speed of 8.89 m/s, being its validation according to the deceleration curve established by Regulation 80. Then it was gotten the Von Mises stress in fastening members of the seat structure in bus body. It is also presented a proposal to improve the fastening of the seat structure...

Public transportation users are constantly in search of regular service, fair cost, high safety, and physical and psychological comfort. Creating a system for bus route evaluation (BRE) can be considered to be among the basic requirements for public transportation management in cities. The need for a logical and scientific tool to support the decisions made by the policy makers of public transportation for the purpose of a higher quality of the services, specifically in a developing metropolitan such as Shiraz, Iran, proves the importance of such a system. In this study, firs, six routes among the 71 bus routes of metropolitan Shiraz were chosen. Subsequently, 16 criteria based on the theoretical literature and the data collected in a survey conducted by the Shiraz Public Bus Organization (SPBO) were produced. Then by using a two-stage multiple-criteria decision making (MCDM) model containing hierarchical Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchal Process (Fuzzy AHP) and TOPSIS methods the data was analyzed and the existing situation of the selected bus routes was evaluated. This study and the presented evaluation framework for the analysis of the current situation along with the comparison of the bus routes can help the managers and policy makers of bus transportation on their way to improving the services...

peer-reviewed; Most cities have special lanes dedicated to buses,
however these lanes are rarely used at full capacity. At the same
time governments around the world are encouraging people to
buy electric vehicles. This paper proposes the creation of electric
vehicle enhanced dedicated bus lanes (E-DBL), by allowing
electric vehicles access to bus lanes, in order to improve the use
of road capacity. By opening bus lanes to electric vehicles, traffic
congestion could be eased, the range of electric vehicles could be
extended, and the travel times for electric vehicle owners could be
reduced significantly. The paper shows how by introducing EDBLs,
the bus journey times are not significantly affected given
the current uptake of electric vehicles in most developed
countries.
This paper presents extensive simulations based on traffic
situation in the city of Dublin with regard to the effect of opening
up bus lanes to electric vehicles. The results show that even with
very high percentages of electric vehicles the bus journey times
are not noticeably affected. Opening up bus lanes to electric
vehicles can even be beneficial for other road users by reducing
congestion on regular lanes, which would further reduce carbon
emissions.

The authors make the case for the return
of regulation in the organization of urban bus services in
developing countries. During the past three decades urban
public transport policy has gone through several phases. The
1980s and 1990s were characterized by liberalization of the
sector from public ownership and monopoly provision. The
experience of several countries, in particular Chile,
indicates that a full liberalization of the sector may not
be the welfare-maximizing option. The authors discuss the
market failures that justify this claim and present the
regulatory options available in this emerging new role of
government. Throughout the paper they illustrate ideas with
examples from Chile, Colombia, and a few other countries.

In recent years helpful guides have
appeared in both English and Spanish to assist planners and
officials to construct accessible buildings and pedestrian
infrastructure which are usable by seniors, persons with
disabilities, and all others who especially benefit from
universal design. Less has been written about access to
public transport systems. Very little guidance is available
concerning specific issues which confront those planning Bus
Rapid Transit (BRT) systems, mass transit systems which
incorporate a spectrum of design and operational features on
integrated trunk and feeder routes and which were initiated
in Latin America and are now spreading throughout the region
and beyond. The guidelines focus on the BRT environment and
assume that interested parties can take advantage of
existing guidelines to clarify general issues of access to
public space, buildings, and pedestrian infrastructure. The
guidelines generally follow the travel path of a passenger
using a full-featured Bus Rapid Transit system. The
accessible travel chain begins with sidewalks and pedestrian
crossings and continues into a typical mid-island station
served by buses with left-side doors (in countries where
traffic drives on the right side). Buses pull up to an
enclosed station with a ramped platform the height of the
bus floor. The guidelines then focus on station features...

Bus stops are key links in the journeys of transit patrons with disabilities. Inaccessible bus stops prevent people with disabilities from using fixed-route bus services, thus limiting their mobility. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 prescribes the minimum requirements for bus stop accessibility by riders with disabilities. Due to limited budgets, transit agencies can only select a limited number of bus stop locations for ADA improvements annually. These locations should preferably be selected such that they maximize the overall benefits to patrons with disabilities. In addition, transit agencies may also choose to implement the universal design paradigm, which involves higher design standards than current ADA requirements and can provide amenities that are useful for all riders, like shelters and lighting.
Many factors can affect the decision to improve a bus stop, including rider-based aspects like the number of riders with disabilities, total ridership, customer complaints, accidents, deployment costs, as well as locational aspects like the location of employment centers, schools, shopping areas, and so on. These interlacing factors make it difficult to identify optimum improvement locations without the aid of an optimization model. This dissertation proposes two integer programming models to help identify a priority list of bus stops for accessibility improvements. The first is a binary integer programming model designed to identify bus stops that need improvements to meet the minimum ADA requirements. The second involves a multi-objective nonlinear mixed integer programming model that attempts to achieve an optimal compromise among the two accessibility design standards.
Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques were used extensively to both prepare the model input and examine the model output. An analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was applied to combine all of the factors affecting the benefits to patrons with disabilities. An extensive sensitivity analysis was performed to assess the reasonableness of the model outputs in response to changes in model constraints. Based on a case study using data from Broward County Transit (BCT) in Florida...

Bogota, the capital city of Colombia, is
located near the geographic center of Colombia, 2,640 meters
(8,661 ft) sea level. It is the largest and most populous
city in the nation, with an estimated 8.2 million
inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2007 and a
population density of 3,912 inhabitants per square
kilometer. Its economy generates 25 percent of
Colombia's total gross domestic product (GDP). The
city's roads were highly congested with the significant
growth in private car ownership and use. While private cars
occupied 64 percent of the road space, they only represented
19 percent of the population, and the daily average commute
time was 1 hour and 10 minutes each way. Other issues
included high incidences of accidents and extremely high air
pollution rates during peak travel hours. In 1999, after the
new National Government rejected potential plans for a
subway system, the Mayor of Bogota presented his plan for a
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, built upon the successful
experience of Curitiba in Brazil. The transition to an
effective BRT system would help realize the Mayor's
four main goals by: (i) improving public transport system
with respect to efficiency...

Buses are the most common form of urban
transit but, in the developing world, are often seen as
inefficient and polluting. It is well known that buses that
are properly tuned and adjusted tend to be cleaner, safer
and consume less fuel than poorly maintained buses. Fuel
cost is a relatively large fraction of total cost especially
when labor and bus costs are low, as in many developing
countries. Hence, reducing fuel use through targeted
maintenance of fuel inefficient buses can reduce significant
expenditures especially in developing countries, freeing up
resources for other improved city services. In addition, if
city buses do not receive periodic maintenance that is
adequate in quality and quantity, their emissions, both
local and global, will suffer. In an effort to catalyze
solutions for urban transport, the World Bank Group focused
on development of a global Knowledge Product in the form of
a 'Guidance Note' (GN) on bus maintenance
procedures. The GN is directed towards city transit managers
and their technical staff in developing countries to enhance
the energy efficiency of city transit. The objective of this
work effort is to prepare a Guidance Note (GN) on
maintenance best practices that is a practical and useful
tool to guide the implementation of a program that will
enhance the fuel efficiency of buses. To address this
objective...

In most large cities in developing
countries, buses continue to be the public transport option
of choice, carrying a large share of urban travelers.
However, transit bus companies in these countries are often
cash-strapped. In many cases, the operating cost per bus
kilometer exceeds revenues and bus fares are often kept low
irrespective of the cost of providing service. Many cities
are dominated by old and fuel-intensive buses with high
operating costs. Transit systems are also often plagued by
overcrowded and undependable service, congested roadways and
chaotic operating environments. Across the board, city
officials in developing countries are under strong pressure
to improve the efficiency and enhance the attractiveness of
bus transportation. Fuel makes up a relatively large
fraction of total bus operating costs, especially when labor
costs are low, as in many developing countries. Fuel costs
can be reduced by improving the driving style of bus drivers
and through sound maintenance practices. A safe and
economical driving style can reduce variable costs...

Artículo de publicación ISI; The interplay between congestion and crowding externalities in the design of urban bus
systems is identified and analysed. A multimodal social welfare maximisation model with
spatially disaggregated demand is developed, in which users choose between travelling by
bus, car or walking in a transport corridor. Optimisation variables are bus fare, congestion
toll, bus frequency, bus size, fare collection system, bus boarding policy and the number of
seats inside buses. We find that optimal bus frequency results from a trade-off between the
level of congestion inside buses, i.e., passengers’ crowding, and the level of congestion outside
buses, i.e., the effect of frequency on slowing down both buses and cars in mixed-traffic
roads. A numerical application shows that optimal frequency is quite sensitive to the
assumptions on crowding costs, impact of buses on traffic congestion, and overall congestion
level. If crowding matters to users, buses should have as many seats as possible, up to a
minimum area that must be left free of seats. If for any other reason planners decide to
have buses with fewer seats than optimal (e.g., to increase bus capacity), frequency should
be increased to compensate for the discomfort imposed on public transport users. Finally...

Artículo de publicación ISI; This paper re-considers the problem of choosing the number of bus stops along urban
routes, first by estimating the probability of stopping in low demand markets, and second
by analysing the interplay between bus stop size, bus running speed, spacing and congestion
in high demand markets. A comprehensive review of the theory and practice on the
location and spacing of bus stops is presented. Using empirical data from Sydney, Australia,
we show that the widely used Poisson model overestimates the probability of stopping in
an on-call bus stopping regime, and consequently underestimates the optimal number of
bus stops that should be designed. For fixed-stop services, we show that bus running speed,
frequency and dwell time are crucial to determining the relationship between bus stop
spacing and demand, with bus stop congestion in the form of queuing delays playing a
key role. In particular, we find that bus stop spacing should be decreased if demand
increases at a constant bus running speed; however, if both bus running speed and the
speed of the passenger boarding process increase, then the distance between bus stops
should be kept long even at high demand levels, a result that is consistent with the implementation
of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems that feature high bus running speeds and
long distances between stops relative to conventional bus services.; This research has been supported by Busways Group...